Becoming the Martial Alliance Leader had been Jin Hagun's long-cherished dream.
He had grown up watching his grandfather since childhood. The words he had heard countless times from those around him were these:
"You must succeed your grandfather."
He had naturally believed he would become the Martial Alliance Leader when he came of age. But his grandfather had announced that he would pass the successor's position to one who possessed the ability and qualifications.
So he worked hard, and worked even harder. Becoming the Martial Alliance Leader was Jin Hagun's very life itself. He couldn't even imagine a life where he failed to become the Martial Alliance Leader.
But what? He was giving up on becoming the Martial Alliance Leader of his own accord?
It was the most shocking thing Jin Hagun had heard since birth.
Watching Jin Hagun's expression harden, Hyeolcheon Doma and Gwonma subtly exchanged glances. They could tell that Geom Mugeuk had sent some kind of voice transmission.
Because they too had experienced it, they could predict what kind of state Jin Hagun was falling into right now.
Bi Sain was also sitting across from him, so she saw that expression.
'No!'
Of course, that didn't mean she interrupted the conversation by butting in between the two of them.
But the anxious Seo Baekjung had no such courtesy.
Seo Baekjung sent a voice transmission to Jin Hagun.
"What are you two discussing so intently?"
He shouldn't have butted in like this, but Jin Hagun's expression had been ominous.
"Wait a moment."
At the curt reply, Seo Baekjung intuited that something was going wrong. Jin Hagun had told him to wait, but he couldn't.
"If the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult is pulling some kind of trick, you must not fall for it!"
At Seo Baekjung's voice transmission, Jin Hagun looked at him coldly. His imposing aura as the leader of the Demon Annihilation Squad, the Martial Alliance's elite organization, overwhelmed Seo Baekjung.
At that sharp reaction, Seo Baekjung could no longer interfere. His premonition was not good. His gaze turned to Geom Mugeuk. He hadn't been an easy opponent from the first time they met. Could Jin Hagun really handle that man? Seo Baekjung intuited that a variable had occurred.
Jin Hagun sent a voice transmission to Geom Mugeuk.
"You say you are giving up on the position of Alliance Leader of your own accord? What does that mean?"
He tried to maintain his composure as much as possible, but his voice was trembling.
"It means that if you obtain the Cheonhwamun, you cannot obtain the position of Martial Alliance Leader."
Jin Hagun's heart, which he had tried so hard to calm, began beating rapidly again. The words "Martial Alliance Leader" were like a weakness to him.
'This is a trick. I absolutely must not fall for it.' Jin Hagun drank the liquor placed before him. After steadying his heart in that way, he calmly asked:
"Tell me the reason."
Geom Mugeuk did not answer immediately. Everyone around them focused on the two. They all felt it—that a very important conversation was taking place between them.
Geomseon sent a voice transmission to Hyeolcheon Doma.
"As long as I am here, it would be best not to pull any futile tricks."
Geomseon seemed to feel some anxiety. They were such supreme experts that they could detect changes in emotion merely from the shifting currents in the air.
"This is an era where old men cannot intervene even if they want to. We have no choice but to watch."
At Hyeolcheon Doma's reply, Geomseon spoke in a stubborn tone.
"One must intervene when intervention is needed."
The two men's personalities clearly had similarities.
"Isn't that why our cult cannot strike the Righteous Faction?"
It was praise that held him in high regard—meaning they couldn't strike because he was there—so Geomseon smiled faintly.
"What are you so grateful to the juniors for, that you sacrifice yourself to this extent?"
"It is not sacrifice. It is living a righteous life."
"Do so while living your own life as well."
They were words that would have drawn a fierce reprimand had anyone else spoken them. But Hyeolcheon Doma was the exception.
"What now... I've lived this way my whole life, how could that life change easily?"
"It might change."
Hyeolcheon Doma's gaze naturally turned to Geom Mugeuk. Wondering what Hyeolcheon Doma's final words meant, Geomseon's gaze also turned toward Geom Mugeuk and Jin Hagun.
At this moment, Jin Hagun was pressing Geom Mugeuk.
"I'm telling you to tell me the reason!"
Then Geom Mugeuk stared at him and answered.
"The reason is something you know as well, isn't it?"
The moment he heard those words, Jin Hagun's heart sank. Geom Mugeuk was beginning to dig into that which he had deliberately buried and pretended not to know.
Jin Hagun's gaze passed over Geom Mugeuk and turned to one seated far away. It was none other than Seo Cheong.
He was the one who had killed an innocent person. Jin Hagun had been constantly worrying about how to deal with him. Even when Seo Baekjung first introduced his son, the reason Jin Hagun hadn't exchanged a single friendly word with him was because of that worry.
"What do you mean?"
He regretted it the moment he asked. He had pretended not to know in the hope that it might be a different reason.
'Damn it.'
He shouldn't have asked even if it were a different reason. He, who dreamed of becoming the Martial Alliance Leader, had pretended not to know to avoid the truth?
So even if it had been a different reason, he might have gotten away with it, but Geom Mugeuk struck precisely at his weakness.
"I speak of Seo Cheong."
Jin Hagun ground his molars without realizing it. 'Get a hold of yourself! You can't get entangled with him.' Unfortunately, this was not an opponent against whom such resolve would work.
"You came here knowing full well what crime he committed, did you not?"
"I..."
Jin Hagun forced himself to answer calmly.
"I intended to worry about his punishment after settling the matter of the Cheonhwamun."
"You will punish him later?"
Geom Mugeuk asked after a brief pause.
"Is that not something you must not do?"
Geom Mugeuk's words flew like a dagger and lodged deep. They were words he should have been the one to say.
'Your Demonic Cult, your Unorthodox Faction—isn't that something you must not do?'
Geom Mugeuk was feeling Jin Hagun's agitation. That was why he was hopeful. He was still young. He still had much to learn and much to experience. If he was someone who knew shame, then it was fine. It was fine to kick off the covers in one's youth.
Geom Mugeuk's voice transmission continued.
"The moment you obtain the Cheonhwamun, you will fail the test given by the Martial Alliance Leader."
"A test?"
At the word "test," Jin Hagun's mind snapped to attention.
"That is correct. This is the Alliance Leader's test."
"How do you know that?"
"Because I have met the Alliance Leader."
"Are you saying you know because you've met the Alliance Leader more times than I, his grandson, have?"
"Correct. The number of times I've met him is probably incomparable to yours. However, Young Lord Jin."
Geom Mugeuk gazed straight at him and asked.
"Until now, have you truly looked at your grandfather?"
Jin Hagun flinched for a moment. Truly looked at his grandfather?
'Of course I had.'
Those words didn't come out immediately. Because his grandfather... was such a difficult person for him.
"What are you trying to say?"
Jin Hagun's voice rose slightly. His composure was already shattered, and he was agitated.
"I mean that because he is someone close, you cannot see him properly. At least, that was the case for me."
Geom Mugeuk conveyed honestly what he had felt. Because he knew that even if he employed all manner of rhetorical techniques, in the end, what moved an opponent's heart was sincerity.
"Until recently, I could not see my father properly. I couldn't see him because I was afraid, and because he was someone I could see at any time, I couldn't see him. Only recently have I been trying to see him properly. That is why I say this. Even if you look a hundred times, a thousand times, if you do not see properly, you may know less than someone who has seen but once."
Their gazes tangled in midair.
Jin Hagun could not deny Geom Mugeuk's words. But he couldn't blindly believe them either. The thought occurred to him that perhaps his grandfather was not thinking such things, and he might simply be falling for one of Geom Mugeuk's tricks. He was confused.
"You are suspicious. How can you be confident that these words are not tricks to seize the Cheonhwamun?"
Then Geom Mugeuk struck his vital point once more.
"Then why are you looking at me?"
"What do you mean?"
"If you are suspicious, you should look at your grandfather. Is that not where you must find the answer?"
Suddenly, Jin Hagun recalled when he had gone to greet his grandfather before leaving for this place.
Now that he thought about it, his grandfather had not said a single word about the Cheonhwamun. Not that they must obtain it, nor how to conduct themselves regarding it.
He had simply told him to return safely. That gaze with which he had looked at him.
Was that truly a gaze that would rejoice at obtaining the Cheonhwamun without punishing the unjust one?
No.
Perhaps he had known all along. He had merely pretended not to. Because it was his master who had proposed it for him. Could it be that his master had spoken the words he himself had wanted to speak?
'Let us achieve a great feat and become the successor!'
Jin Hagun's face flushed hot. Even though he pretended not to know, even though he used his master as an excuse, he had known. That he had done it because he wanted to.
"The person who connected you and that Cheonhwamun leader does not wish for you to become the Alliance Leader."
Jin Hagun's expression instantly hardened completely.
Through that reaction, Geom Mugeuk was able to learn one fact.
'He is someone close to Jin Hagun.'
It was without a doubt someone closer to Jin Hagun than Seo Baekjung.
Jin Hagun trusted his master. He revered and followed him above anyone else.
He had believed his master proposed this matter to help him become the Alliance Leader.
'I must trust my master! I must not fall for sowing discord!'
Bi Sain was watching Jin Hagun's expression change from moment to moment.
What on earth had been said to throw Jin Hagun, whom she had just met, into such passion?
Well, if she thought about herself, the answer came out. If she thought about how her own emotions had changed after meeting Geom Mugeuk. What was truly taking place at this drinking gathering was not a clash between righteous and evil, but a clash between the Righteous and the Demonic.
Bi Sain sent a voice transmission to Geom Mugeuk.
"You are the number one villain in all the martial world!"
"The voice transmissions are getting crossed, so send yours later!"
"No! Please get them crossed and misunderstand it terribly."
Bi Sain was astonished that she was saying such things. She had never imagined that someone like herself could exchange such jokes with another person. She had thought that with this hideous scar, she could not share sincere conversations with anyone.
Meanwhile, Seo Cheong sent a voice transmission to Seo Baekjung.
"Why is it so quiet?"
"They are conversing through voice transmission."
"Someday I will take revenge on that Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult. Father, please take revenge for me!"
Seo Baekjung found his son pathetic for being unable to read the atmosphere. He didn't even say he would take revenge himself, but "please take revenge for me." Compared to those three successors, he was all the more pathetic.
But the fact that he had raised him this way was ultimately his own responsibility.
"Do not act rashly and stay quiet."
They say the position makes the person. He had thought that if he created a great position and passed it down, his son would become someone befitting it. It was a complacent thought. Even if it was just a portion of the effort put into raising the Cheonhwamun—no, raising a child was an endeavor that took even greater effort than all of that.
The price of avoiding that responsibility was speaking before his eyes right now.
"Should I quietly slip away just in case?"
Seo Baekjung answered with a sigh.
"It is already too late. So stay put."
Meanwhile, the voice transmission between Geom Mugeuk and Jin Hagun continued.
"Very well, let us say you are right. Then why are you telling me this? To seize the Cheonhwamun?"
"Of course, that is part of the reason, but there is a greater reason than that."
"What is it?"
"It is because I wished for you to be someone who keeps to principles."
A cold aura erupted from Jin Hagun's body. He did not want to hear talk of principles from a demon.
As he raised his momentum, those around him tensed simultaneously.
The Demon Annihilation Squad raised their internal energy, and the Heavenly Demon Hall guards and the Sado Sipsamnang also raised their momentum, preparing for a counterattack.
On the other hand,Geom Mugeuk was exceedingly calm.
"Later, when either I become the Cult Leader or you become the Alliance Leader, thousands or tens of thousands of lives will hang on our decisions. At that time, I hope we do not make the wrong decisions. You, me, and that Young Leader Bi over there. I hope we are people who keep to principles."
The aura that had surged out from Jin Hagun subsided. He could feel it. That Geom Mugeuk was speaking from the heart. His eyes were saying this. Become a good Alliance Leader. And so, let us not wage war in our era.
'I've lost.'
It was the single phrase that rose in Jin Hagun's heart.
Whether Geom Mugeuk's words were false or sincere, it was his complete defeat. He had to admit it. Whether Geom Mugeuk was a conman or a true Demonic Hero, he was at least someone more outstanding than himself. Someone he would have difficulty handling.
'I must work harder. Ten times, a hundred times harder than now!'
For the day when he himself became Alliance Leader, he had to ensure that the Murim Alliance would not be taken from him by that Geom Mugeuk before his eyes.
Jin Ha-gun spoke calmly.
—I will become a man who upholds principles. Not because you want that of me. Because I have always wanted to become such a person.
—I believe you will.
—Are you mocking me?
—Mockery should be reserved for someone like that Seo Cheong over there. Should it not be directed at Seo Baekjung, who is trying to protect a man like that simply because he is his son? Is that not why we exist? If not us, then who could restrain the children of great sects like Cheonhwamun?
—You really are……
It was a complete defeat to the very end.
Jin Ha-gun’s gaze suddenly turned toward Bisa-in, who sat across from him.
Their eyes met. So absorbed had he been in Geom Mugeuk that he had not even realized Bisa-in had been looking at him like this.
Without a word, Bisa-in filled Jin Ha-gun’s empty cup with wine.
The feeling was somewhat different now from when he had first sat down opposite him so provocatively.
Jin Ha-gun drank the wine Bisa-in had poured for him. Who would have thought that wine poured by the successor of the Evil Faction would be so comforting?
Bisa-in was not the only one whose demeanor had changed.
Seo Baekjung was looking at him with a strange gaze. It was as though that gaze were asking:
‘Surely you haven’t been won over by that Demon Cult bastard and are planning to withdraw your hand from us?’
Just then, Geom Mugeuk’s sound transmission came flying in.
—Are you worried about your promise with the Cheonhwamun Master?
How quick he was to read the room. Yes, he was worried. Until moments ago, he had been loudly declaring that they could rely on him alone, and now to say, My mind has changed, made it hard for him to open his mouth. Moreover, they were not alone; all these people were watching, which made it even harder.
—I will resolve it so that you won’t be put in a difficult position. Would that be all right?
The words “I don’t want that” rose to Jin Ha-gun’s throat. In terms of momentum, he no longer wanted to be swayed by Geom Mugeuk. But he had to withdraw his hand from Cheonhwamun. Only then would he have something to say to his grandfather when he returned.
Just how did he intend to resolve it without putting him in a difficult position? He was far too curious about that method.
The very moment Jin Ha-gun’s head gave a slight nod, Geom Mugeuk ended the long sound transmission and opened his mouth.
“Now, now. Let us have a drink and ease the tension.”
They all drank together. Everyone was curious as to what conclusion Geom Mugeuk and Jin Ha-gun’s sound-transmission conversation had reached.
Setting down his cup, Geom Mugeuk said as though it were nothing significant.
“Originally, this matter was not something that should have grown this large. As you all know, this affair began because our Sect Master Seo wished to protect his son, who had committed murder several times. I understand, as it is the bond between parent and child. However, considering that those who died were innocent people……”
At that moment, someone cut off Geom Mugeuk’s words.
“What do you mean by that?”
It was the man who had lived his entire life for good deeds and righteousness—the Sword Immortal.